'It was just time,' Grand Island football coach Jeff Tomlin retires after 21 years

GRAND ISLAND, Neb. -- After more than two decades as a head coach in central Nebraska, a Grand Island Senior High legend is set to retire.

Coach Jeff Tomlin is stepping away from the football field. One of the hardest parts of the decision was telling his team.

“It was emotional for me, probably more so for them," Tomlin said. "Because you kind of feel a sense of maybe I’m abandoning these kids, feel a little bit of guilt that way, but they understand and they have been very supportive.”

On Monday, after 21 years as Grand Island head coach, the school announced that Tomlin will retire.  

“It was just time, you know, just the demands that it places on you, the job places on you," Tomlin said. "Just the desire to spent more time with my grandkids, and my kids, nieces and nephews, my family.”

During his time coaching at Grand Island, he earned 18 playoff wins, won four district championships, six Heartland Athletic Conference championships, and guided the Islanders to a state runner-up finish in 2018.

So, what will he miss the most?

“I'll miss the relationships that I have with the players,” Tomlin said. "We have an incredibly close coaching staff and that’s been something that I have wrestled with for a while. It’s going to be really hard to walk away from that."

Tomlin also coached at O’Neill and Alliance. In total, his career spans 37 years, during which he won multiple awards including the Nebraska Coaches Association Football Coach of the Year and Nebraska Football Coach of the Year. 

But he hopes his legacy is more than just awards. 

“Just that I did everything I could to help kids be better people and that I gave Grand Island Senior High everything that I had," Tomlin said.

Beside spending more time with his family, Tomlin plans to do some consulting and public speaking on team and culture building. He will continue to coach track and field. 

The district plans to list the position and begin the search for a new coach.